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Durham have plenty of downtime ahead of Friday night’s Vitality Blast quarter-final against Sussex while Glamorgan’s coach has lots to ponder

ECB Reporters Network21-Aug-2018
ScorecardDurham’s bowlers needed only 8.2 overs to dismiss the remaining three Glamorgan batsmen at Sophia Gardens this morning to gain their third championship win of the season, and inflict on Glamorgan their third successive championship defeat and their sixth in the last seven games.Resuming on 79 for 7, Glamorgan soon lost Craig Meschede, who was leg before to Chris Rushworth in the fourth over of the day, and the Durham seamer struck again in his next two overs when he bowled Lukas Carey and Michael Hogan to end Glamorgan’s misery.The victory margin, an innings and 30 runs, was a fair reflection of Durham’s dominance throughout the game, while Glamorgan were to reflect on another hugely disappointing performance which will little to restore confidence or morale.Rushworth ended with 5 for 28, and match figures of 8 for 64 as throughout the match Glamorgan’s batsmen were unable to counter the movement Durham’s seamers obtained in both innings.It all left Glamorgan’s coach Robert Croft with much to ponder as he seeks to keep momentum in the season after the county’s failure to reach the last eight of the Vitality Blast.Had the weather not intervened in this game, Glamorgan would have been beaten inside two days in successive games, and although they have been unlucky with their overseas signings and Marchant De Lange, one of their leading bowlers, has been out injured since mid-May, the fact is that their young batsmen have been unable to cope with opposing attacks.Meanwhile, Durham, who will have an extra day off before Friday’s T20 quarter final game against Sussex at Chester Le Street, will be delighted with their performance, especially their two debutants Alex Lees and Axar Patel.Lees, signed from Yorkshire, was soon into his stride with an assured 69, while Indian all rounder Patel, took three wickets in the game and struck an aggressive 95 and rescue Durham following a mid -innings collapse.A dejected Glamorgan captain Michael Hogan said after the crushing defeat,”it was not ideal, it was just another of those days. The dressing room is pretty low at the moment, and we have to give them the opportunity to have some fun, and get some smiles back on their faces. We will have nets on Thursday and get some practice before the game against Warwickshire next week.”Durham seamer Chris Rushworth, who took eight wickets in the game, said” it was good to field in bowling conditions on the first day, and it suited our bowlers. We were clinical, and that’s what we need to be to beat the teams around us in the championship. Everyone contributed, and it was a very satisfying victory”

AB de Villiers has said he was “pretty upset” at being asked by the umpires to explain the condition of one of the balls during South Africa’s narrow defeat against England at the Ageas Bowl

Alan Gardner at the Ageas Bowl27-May-20173:03

‘Upset at being held responsible for condition of the ball’ – de Villiers

AB de Villiers has said he was “pretty upset” at being asked by the umpires to explain the condition of one of the balls during South Africa’s narrow defeat against England at the Ageas Bowl.Rob Bailey and Chris Gaffaney, the standing umpires, spoke to de Villiers before the start of the 34th over in England’s innings, bowled by Keshav Maharaj. De Villiers was animated in his response on the field and the ball was not changed; afterwards, South Africa’s captain said he felt it was being implied that his players were at fault for scuffing up the ball.”The umpires felt the condition of the ball changed,” de Villiers said, “in a way, making me feel that we are responsible. I was quite upset about that. I don’t know what else I can say, I was pretty upset. It’s done and dusted now, nothing happened, there were no fines given or anything like that.”I honestly told the umpires we have nothing to do with the condition of ball, except for the fact that Maharaj bowled five overs on the trot from that end. The ball generally scuffs up when the spinner bowls a few overs. I expressed my views about that and we move on.”Asked if he felt that the implication from the umpires was that his side had been engaging in ball-tampering, de Villiers replied: “Yes. That’s the feeling that I got and I expressed that I was quite upset about it. But like I said, no further steps were taken from both parties.”If I can give my five cents, I felt it was a bad ball and that happens sometimes. The leather comes off and you do get that. Unfortunately the umpires didn’t agree. [But] nothing happened, generally there’s a warning or a fine, none of that happened, which tells me they realised we were innocent in this case.”South Africa were sanctioned last year for altering the condition of the ball in a Test against Australia in Hobart, after their captain, Faf du Plessis, was filmed by television cameras with a mint in his mouth when applying saliva to shine the ball. In 2013, during a series against Pakistan, du Plessis also pleaded guilty to a charge of ball-tampering after rubbing the ball near the zipper on his trousers.Eoin Morgan, England’s captain, said his team were unaware of any suggestion that the ball had been scuffed up. “Normally, if there’s any dispute about the ball, they change it straight away,” he said.The umpiring team of Bailey, Gaffaney, the third umpire, Rod Tucker, and match referee, Andy Pycroft, were engaged in their customary debriefing after the game, with no suggestion that the matter would be taken further.Having seen his team lose out off the final ball by two runs, de Villiers praised England’s bowlers for closing out victory and the series. With ten balls to go, South Africa needed ten runs to win but Jake Ball and Mark Wood conceded just six singles and a leg bye to deny David Miller and Chris Morris.”I thought the boys played a great hand at the end there, to get us so close,” de Villiers said. “I got a bit excited, thought we had it in the bag. Got to give credit to the last two bowlers of England, who finished there, they showed some great skill and good plans.”Unfortunately it didn’t go our way, we didn’t get the lucky bounce – if you want to call it that, a little edge over the keeper. We were just waiting for one little break and it would be game over. The boys gave it their best shot. Chris and David played a great knock, built a great partnership but unfortunately we couldn’t cross the line.”

Rising Pune Supergiants’ seam bowlers, led by Ashok Dinda, used the fresh Hyderabad surface to reduce Sunrisers Hyderabad to 32 for 5, setting up a crucial 34-run D/L win

The Report by Nikhil Kalro26-Apr-2016
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAshok Dinda set up Rising Pune Supergiants’ win with his second-best IPL figures•BCCI

Rising Pune Supergiants’ seam bowlers, led by Ashok Dinda, used the fresh Hyderabad surface as an ally to restrict Sunrisers Hyderabad to 118 for 8, before producing a dominant batting performance to seal a 34-run win via the Duckworth-Lewis method.Sunrisers were reduced to 32 for 5 after mild showers delayed play by an hour. Dinda, brought in for Ankit Sharma, struck off the fourth delivery to dismiss David Warner, Sunrisers’ highest scorer, to set the tone for the evening. He later dismissed Aditya Tare and Naman Ojha to finish with 3 for 23. In the chase, Faf du Plessis and Steven Smith overcame the early loss of Ajinkya Rahane by putting together 80 off just 55 balls to derail Sunrisers.Rain returned to bring a premature end to the game with Supergiants needing 25. It was the 18th win by a chasing side in 22 games this season.Dinda, making his debut for Supergiants, removed Warner with a wide delivery that was cut straight to backward point, eliciting a Cristiano Ronaldo-like celebration. Mitchell Marsh swung the ball both ways to leave the batsmen searching for runs. The pressure of an unproductive Powerplay resulted in loose shots from Tare and Eoin Morgan as Sunrisers slipped to 27 for 3.Sunrisers’ innings went from bad to worse when Deepak Hooda gloved a reverse sweep off R Ashwin’s first delivery to MS Dhoni. In the next over, Moises Henriques was strangled down leg to leave Sunrisers at 32 for 5.Supergiants did not concede a boundary from the sixth over till the 14th, with R Ashwin conceding 14 in four straight overs. It was only the third time he completed his full quota this season.Shikhar Dhawan and Naman Ojha milked the bowling, but the inability to find boundaries forced them into playing the big shots. Dhawan, who was dropped by Rahane at long-off in the 15th over, carried on to post his second fifty of the season, but Bhuvneshwar Kumar provided the finishing touches – his eight-ball 21 gave Sunrisers momentum going into the break.Bhuvneshwar wasn’t done yet; he gave Sunrisers some hope in the chase with a wicket-maiden in the first over, after having Rahane caught at backward point. However, Smith and du Plessis capitalised on loose bowling, hitting 11 boundaries in the next seven overs to all but finish the game. Mustafizur Rahman, Warner’s trump card, was also taken apart by Smith’s wristy flicks.Du Plessis’ fluent knock ended when he edged behind for 30. Dhoni, who got off the mark with a muscular hit over mid-on, nailed a cut straight to backward point off Ashish Nehra soon after just as the drizzle got heavier. The players scurried off immediately with Supergiants at 94 for 3, comfortably ahead of the D/L par score of 60.

There was relief and hope for Somerset: relief that their pitch had been given the all-clear following several sessions of close scrutiny, and some hope of a vital backs-to-the-wall victory

David Lloyd at Taunton04-Sep-2013
ScorecardJames Hildreth’s innings has put the match back on an even keel•Getty Images

There was relief and hope for Somerset: relief that their pitch had been given the all-clear following several sessions of close scrutiny, and some hope – despite the galling last ball of the day dismissal of Craig Kieswetter – of a vital backs-to-the-wall victory in this relegation nerve-tingler.ECB pitch inspector Bill Hughes was among those present yesterday when the ball turned and bounced significantly from the outset, for home spinners Piyush Chawla and Jack Leach. At the close of play, umpire David Millns confirmed the surface was being “monitored”.Today, Hughes settled down behind the bowler’s arm, alongside groundsman Simon Lee, and announced during the lunch interval that his work was not yet done. But by tea, he declared himself satisfied; meaning any threat of a points penalty had been removed.Of even more importance for Somerset – and potentially more damaging for Derbyshire – the balance of power had started to shift out in the middle. A daunting first innings deficit of 195 was eaten into by Marcus Trescothick’s sixth half-century of this, so far, hundred-less season and then wiped away completely through the combined efforts of Nick Compton and James Hildreth.By stumps, the hosts were ahead, by 36. And if only Kieswetter had defended Shiv Chanderpaul’s final delivery instead of trying to cut the now extremely occasional legspinner, they would have had seven wickets in hand. The ball cannoned into the stumps via a bottom edge and Derbyshire celebrated an unexpected and badly needed late gift.But even now, the visitors can anticipate a testing fourth innings run-chase, thanks in no small part to a stand of 116 between Compton and Hildreth.Trescothick, dropped on 35 by second slip Richard Johnson off Tim Groenewald, was unable to benefit fully from his slice of luck. And Hildreth, having looked all at sea early on against the spinners, prospered splendidly yet still failed, by 19 runs, to turn what was only his third Championship fifty of the campaign into a second hundred – under-edging an attempted pull into his stumps. But Compton remained reassuringly rock-solid throughout.The, for now at least, former-England batsman dropped down to No. 3 so he could have treatment on a stiff neck. But once in the middle he looked happy enough, negotiating 151 deliveries while accumulating 64 unbeaten runs. No wonder Derbyshire were looking hot and bothered before Kieswetter played into their hands.Last year’s Division Two champions were recently penalised for a pitch producing excessive turn during a YB40 match and at least some in their camp will believe they saw enough evidence on the first day here for Somerset to have been convicted of a similar charge.The problem, in more ways than one, for the visitors is that their spinners were unable to extract as much turn and bounce as Chawla and Leach – at least not on anything like a regular basis.They had chosen to leave out 19-year-old offspinner Peter Burgoyne, who has played in the last four games, while left-armer David Wainwright started this match with a season record of 13 wickets at 55 runs apiece. He posed some problems, inevitably, but no more than occasional tweaker Wayne Madsen. It was more in hope than expectation, then, that Chanderpaul was called upon, but what a good decision.Derbyshire had added 78 for 5 this morning which was both a fair bit better than seemed likely at 256 for 9 but ultimately just a tad disappointing when they were all out, following a last wicket stand of 42 between Tim Groenewald and Mark Footitt, with a third batting point only two runs away.Alfonso Thomas did most of the damage with the ball, taking 3 for 19 in six overs with the help of two outside edges and a bad misjudgement from Palladino, who padded up to an in-ducker.Derbyshire might have expected to face another trial by spin. Instead, Trescothick ignored left-armer Leach completely and kept Chawla’s powder dry until 55 minutes into the session. When the little Indian leggie did appear, his sixth delivery – one that hurried through – easily defeated Johnson’s ill-advised attempted pull.Johnson deserved a career-best but had to settle for 68, four short of that landmark. Still, his earlier partnership of 103 with Tim Poynton had gone a long way towards putting the visitors into a position of strength – and it did not go unnoticed by Somerset supporters that the stand was worth precisely what the hosts could muster, in total, in their first innings.That should have been just about it. Instead, the last pair made merry (when they weren’t playing at fresh air during Chawla’s five-over spell) and Groenewald’s almost-straight six off the legspinner was a treat to behold. In the end, with 300 beckoning, confidence got the better of Footitt and a sliced drive against Craig Meschede brought the curtain down.

Brendan Taylor will have the treble role of leading the side, anchoring the batting and playing as the first-choice wicketkeeper at the World Twenty20

Firdose Moonda12-Sep-2012All 12 captains at the upcoming World T20 will have issues on their mind ahead of the big event, none more so than Zimbabwe’s leader Brendan Taylor. He will have the treble role of leading the side, anchoring the batting and playing as the first-choice wicketkeeper. Taylor has done all three jobs before but never all at the same time. That makes this tournament as stern an examination of his ability as multi-tasker as it will of his team and the progress they have made since their return to Test cricket last August.Taylor took over the captaincy shortly before Zimbabwe were ready to re-enter the elite club of the game and has shown himself to be creative, unafraid and a strong performer while in charge. He led Zimbabwe through a successful comeback and has kept the armband for longer than most of his counterparts. He has also earned many personal accolades in the time and was being picked up by T20 leagues in New Zealand and Bangladesh as reward for his efforts.He has developed into one of the country’s most reliable batsmen and when Tatenda Taibu announced his retirement from the game in July, to follow his spiritual calling in the church, Taylor had to become its premier gloveman as well. Whether he will do the job in the longer format remains to be seen but he is man in possession for now and has shown no signs of being overburdened.Taylor took the gloves in the unofficial T20 tri-series played in June, which Zimbabwe won after beating a South African XI in the final of the competition, which also featured Bangladesh. Taylor was the second highest run-scorer in the tournament, making 163 runs in five matches, including a half-century.Zimbabwe’s openers, Hamilton Masakadza and Vusi Sibanda, ensured that Taylor was rarely under pressure in at No.3. On one of the occasions when he was, in the final, Taylor featured in a 118-run partnership with Masakadza and scored 59 to guide Zimbabwe to victory.It was a small example of the way Taylor responds to increased responsibility. Zimbabwe’s most experienced player, Ray Price, has no doubt that Taylor would continue in that vein at the World T20. “I think he’ll sweat quite a bit in this weather but I think he’ll do well,” Price said at Zimbabwe’s arrival press conference in Colombo. “When you’re keeping it’s also easier to manoeuvre the field and in T20, he’ll be pressed for time, so that will be a big advantage for him.”Taylor’s position behind the stumps is not the only thing he has going for him ahead of the tournament. He was the only Zimbabwean player to feature in the recently completed SLPL and while he did not find any form for the Uthura Rudras, with just 46 runs in his six innings, he was able to get first-hand experience of conditions in Sri Lanka and gathered information to pass on to his charges.Most notably Taylor thought that there would be more life in the tracks on the subcontinent, despite their reputation. “I thought the wickets moved around a bit so it was fairly challenging,” Taylor said. “Last year we were here for the World Cup and I think the wickets have changed a little bit since then so it will be quite interesting to see how it goes.”Price said he also expects something for Zimbabwe’s bowlers in the group stage. “Hambantota does swing around and there’s quite a bit of wind there as well,” he said. “The most important thing is to attack as much as we can. Kyle Jarvis and Chris Mpofu have been bowling really well, so it will be interesting to see how they apply what they’ve learnt from those past experiences.”More than the conditions, the place itself may give Zimbabwe an advantage. Known as one of the most remote international grounds, Hambantota has been criticised for the lack of other facilities, such as hotels and shops, in the area close to the ground. Taylor is aware that some teams, including the hosts, would be uncomfortable in the city. “It’s new to the South Africans as well and I know the Sri Lankans would probably rather play elsewhere,” he said.For Zimbabwe though, just playing international cricket is enough. Their national team has not been in action since January when they toured New Zealand and have had to make do with unofficial tournaments and training camps since then. Lack of preparation has been a common thread for Zimbabwe.”It hasn’t been ideal but our preparations back home have been close to what we’ve wanted. We had a good six or eight weeks together, playing a lot of T20 matches and team-building so we feel prepared and we’re all ready to go. I think we’ve covered all the angles. We’ve all played enough cricket in the past so it’s just we’re all ready to go.”Sparse competition at the top level means that Zimbabwe do not see their role as making up the numbers, even though the groupings would suggest otherwise. Each three-team ensemble has one outfit that are likeliest to exit early and Zimbabwe are under no illusions. Taylor insists he won’t let that stand in the team’s way.”We know what we’re up against and to be honest we’re not too flustered about it,” he said. “It’s going to be extremely tough but that’s why we’re here. We want to showcase our talent and skills and it’s great to be part of a good tournament. Hopefully we can have a so-called upset but we feel we’re good enough to go out there and win.”As Price will remind him, it will only take one good performance to advance to the Super Eights. “The good thing is if you win one game you’ve got a good chance of going through,” he said. “If we can scratch a win between the two of them it will be very good for us.”

Dawid Malan struck a brilliant century as Middlesex took control on the third day of their top-of-the-table clash against Northamptonshire

25-Aug-2011
ScorecardDawid Malan struck a brilliant century as Middlesex took control on the third day of their top-of-the-table clash against Northamptonshire in Division Two of the County Championship at Wantage Road. Malan made a fantastic 113 off 170 balls including 17 fours and Ollie Rayner
blasted 57 off 48 deliveries as Middlesex declared on 479 for 8 – their highest total this season.James Middlebrook took 5 for 123 for Northants, who then survived nine overs in the evening to close on 22 without loss with a deficit of 181 runs to make up.Middlesex began the day on 149 for 2, 127 runs behind their opponents, with their captain Chris Rogers and nightwatchman Toby Roland-Jones both resuming on 3. Rogers was to go past 50 off 82 balls with a four through mid-wicket off Lee Daggett and Roland-Jones was to make his highest score for Middlesex.He went past his previous best total of 26, but he was to perish on 28 when he dragged Middlebrook’s first delivery, in the 64th over, onto his stumps. Middlebrook was to strike again when Rogers, who had moved on to 55, was well caught by Northants captain Andrew Hall at slip.There was a flashpoint before lunch when David Lucas gestured towards a group of spectators who sarcastically applauded him for stopping a Malan drive at mid-off after he had previously misfielded in the same position.The visitors were on 244 for 4 at the interval, but they lost Jamie Dalrymple for 40 when he was caught by Daggett, running from long leg, off Chaminda Vaas. However, by this point they had already passed Northants’ total to take the lead before Malan reached 50 off 110 balls.Resuming after tea on 371 for 5, Middlesex wicketkeeper John Simpson went cheaply for 24 in the fifth over of the evening when he launched Vaas to Alex Wakely at deep square leg. Malan then kicked on to complete the seventh first-class century of his career and his second of this season off 165 balls with a four through third man off Daggett.But he finally had to walk when he feathered Middlebrook him to Northants wicketkeeper David Murphy. Rayner then smashed an explosive half-century off just 43 balls but Middlebrook
had his 10th first-class five-wicket haul when he was caught behind by Murphy just before the visitors declared.A rain delay meant the loss of three overs but Rob Newton and Stephen Peters survived until the close and will resume tomorrow on 14 and six respectively.

England have added Tim Bresnan to their squad for the final Test of the summer against Pakistan at Lord’s on Thursday

Cricinfo staff22-Aug-2010England have added Tim Bresnan to their squad for the final Test of the summer against Pakistan at Lord’s on Thursday.Having taken the unprecedented route of naming their starting XI three days in advance of the third Test, which they went on to lose by four wickets, England have returned to their more established option of naming a squad this time round, with Bresnan the only addition to the team that lost at The Oval.Going into the match it was Alastair Cook’s position at the top of the order that was most under scrutiny but he responded with 110 in the second innings and Geoff Miller, the national selector, feels his performance was a bright spot in the defeat.”There were some real positives from the last Test such as Alastair Cook’s outstanding century and the way the team fought hard on the final day defending a small total,” said Miller. “But ultimately the team is looking for an improved performance to finish the series well.”Bresnan kept his spot ahead of Yorkshire team-mate Ajmal Shahzad after replacing him in the squad for the first Test when Shahzad suffered an ankle injury. It gives Shahzad another opportunity to work on his game at his home county, after taking seven wickets in Yorkshire’s recent Championship victory over Durham.”We have been saying throughout this entire series that consistency is key and that certainly remains the case. We know Pakistan are a dangerous side, which they showed in the last Test, so we will be looking for a strong performance across the board in this final Test match of the summer.”England squad: Andrew Strauss (capt), Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior (wk), Graeme Swann, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Steven Finn, Tim Bresnan

Rapid rise continues for former allrounder as he takes charge of England’s second tier

Vithushan Ehantharajah07-Sep-2024Andrew Flintoff’s rise through the coaching ranks continues after he was announced as the new England men’s Lions head coach.Flintoff, who played 79 Tests for England, will begin his new role in October, leading the Lions to South Africa before Christmas, then to Australia in January for a red-ball tour that will act as a fact-finding mission ahead of the 2025-26 Ashes. Next summer, the Lions will also host India A and Zimbabwe. Flintoff will be involved in performance planning, player development reviews with counties, team selection and player appraisals, and will combine this with his existing role as head coach of Northern Superchargers in the Men’s Hundred.The role will be Flintoff’s most demanding since returning to cricket in 2023, when he re-emerged to public life following a horrific car crash while filming an episode ofin December 2022. The 46-year-old talked openly about this challenging period of his life in the second series of his BBC documentary, , which aired its final episode on Tuesday.With the help of close friend and men’s managing director Rob Key, Flintoff has assumed several consultancy roles with the national team and went on to work as an assistant coach during the 2023 tour of the Caribbean and the T20 World Cup. He is currently on the staff for the third Test against Sri Lanka at the Kia Oval and presented Josh Hull with his maiden Test cap on Friday morning.Related

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This summer, Flintoff was appointed head coach of Northern Superchargers, who narrowly missed out on a top-three finish in the men’s Hundred on Net Run Rate. The fact that he had been fast-tracked for a high-profile job that had not been publicly advertised, however, raised awkward questions about the ECB’s recruitment processes. In a statement released on Saturday regarding the Lions head coach role, which was advertised, the ECB stated: “Flintoff emerged as the standout candidate from a pool of high-calibre applicants.””I’m incredibly excited to take on this role with the England Lions,” Flintoff said. “It’s a fantastic opportunity to work with some of the best up-and-coming talent in the country and to help shape the future of the men’s game. The Lions programme has always been a vital stepping stone for players pushing for international success, and I’m honoured to be part of that journey.”The future of the game in England is in excellent health. There is a wealth of talent emerging, and I’m looking forward to helping these players reach their full potential. Whether these players are pushing for England selection or finding their feet in Lions cricket, I have no doubt that the Lions programme will offer a real point of difference in their development. It’s an exciting time for English cricket, and I’m passionate about inspiring the next generation to take the sport forward. We’ve got a strong foundation, and I believe we can create something truly special.”ECB men’s performance director Ed Barney said: “We are thrilled to welcome Andrew Flintoff into this key role. Andrew stood out thanks to his inspirational leadership, coaching expertise, and deep understanding of the game. His vision aligns very closely with the playing style and identity that has been fostered with England Men under Brendon McCullum and this appointment contributes to a truly exciting outlook for the future of English cricket.”The England Lions programme is a cornerstone of our cricketing structure, playing a critical role in nurturing the next generation of talent. With Andrew’s guidance, the highest potential players will continue to develop, thrive and take their game to new levels. I’m confident his influence will resonate across English cricket, helping drive the game forward.”

Allrounder warns that tourists have yet to produce “complete performance” on tour

Valkerie Baynes17-Jul-2023Australia have rediscovered their mojo, but simply retaining the Ashes is not enough for a world-beating side who have been pushed to their limits by England.The hosts can make it victories in two white-ball series from two if they clinch the final ODI in Taunton on Tuesday, although the best they can do points-wise is to move to equal with Australia on eight, which will mean the overall contest is a draw and the tourists still heading home with the Ashes. Ellyse Perry, whose innings of 91 set Australia up to break a three-game losing streak in the second ODI in Southampton, said that wouldn’t do.”That last game in Taunton is really important to us because I think a few of us have been involved in campaigns where we’ve retained the Ashes, but it’s always nice to win the Ashes so it’s a good challenge for us,” Perry said on Sunday. “It’s the last game so everyone has that in their sights.Related

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• The nerveless, box-office cricketer that is Nat Sciver-Brunt

“We’ve also probably been chasing a complete performance from the group and that hasn’t come yet. We’ve played patches of really good cricket and today, the way that we fought the whole way through and wrestled back momentum at different stages is one of our better outings on this trip, but I think there’s still a really great opportunity for us to play to our potential. That’s a great carrot and, as I said, to win the Ashes rather than retain them.”In a quick turnaround of just over 48 hours between matches, both sides must overcome the emotion of playing through another nerve-jangling finish after Australia won by three runs on the final ball at the Ageas Bowl, Nat Sciver-Brunt’s unbeaten century taking England to the brink of another victory that would have kept the series alive.The closeness of the contest was in keeping with the entire series, which has been hard-fought throughout, and Heather Knight, the England captain, said afterwards that victory in the final match would prove there was no longer “a gap” between the sides. Meanwhile, Alana King, the legspinner who turned the game Australia’s way with three key wickets, believes her side is still some distance ahead and keen to show it in Taunton. But Perry has a more nuanced view.”I actually have probably a slightly different look on the gap,” she said. “If you look across the last four or five years, we’ve had lots of really, really close games against different opponents, whether that’s been India or England, New Zealand at times, South Africa. But I think something that probably has been key to those last few years has been the consistency of our play and the ability to find ways to win lots of matches.”So I don’t know if there’s always been a huge gap. I think teams are certainly finding different ways of playing and improving and I think that’s no different for us, so we’ve got to keep evolving and keep improving. But, in terms of gap, I think it’s just that we’ve been really consistent and England have played some really consistent cricket this series so it’s pushed us often and I think we’ve pushed them as well. Hence why it’s been so tight.”Ellyse Perry proved the difference in a tight Southampton ODI•Getty Images

Amy Jones, the England wicketkeeper-batter, first mooted the idea that England were closing on Australia during this series after her explosive innings of 40 not out from 21 balls lifted her side to a respectable total in the first T20I at Edgbaston before the visitors managed to scrape past them by four wickets with just one ball remaining. That was a turning point for the hosts, who went on to win the next three games to claim honours in the T20 leg 2-1 and take a 1-0 lead in the ODIs, as it was the catalyst for England to play with the confidence of a side that knew their opponents were beatable.Australia, in the unfamiliar position of losing a string of close encounters, were forced to change things up and they opted for a four-pronged spin attack for the Ageas Bowl.King, who hadn’t played since Australia’s victory in the Test which opened the series, claimed 3 for 44 while offspinner Ashleigh Gardner – who bagged 12 wickets in the Test – took 3 for 54 and bowled a tight penultimate over before left-arm spinner Jess Jonassen reprised her role of ice-cool death bowler with great success for the third time in four ODIs against England. Jonassen had bowled the last over during the group stage and in the final of last year’s 50-over World Cup, with Sciver-Brunt also scoring a century in each of those games. At Bristol last Wednesday, Knight and Kate Cross managed to get one up on Jonassen as they guided England to victory with 11 balls to spare.Georgia Wareham was their other spinner in Southampton, taking 1 for 47 from her 10 overs, but it was her unbeaten 37 off 14 balls, including 26 runs off Lauren Bell in the final over of Australia’s innings that lifted the total to 282 for 7, asking England to produce their second record ODI run chase in as many matches to win.”It was really deliberate selection decision for us to have the four spinners in the team and they did an amazing job,” Perry said. “For Alana to come in and play a first white-ball game of the series and perform the way she did, Georgia’s been consistent the whole way, Ash is so dependable and then JJ closing out – I’ve just named four of the best spinners in the world there, which is amazing to have at our disposal.”I think what our spinners have done really well is just built constant pressure. I think from a pace group, and it’s something that we’ll keep working on and it presents a really awesome opportunity for us to take our game to a new level, is just to be able to build that consistent pressure. We’ve bowled well in patches at times but often let players off the hook and with England’s aggressive approach to that, especially at the start of their innings, that’s kind of got away from us at different points in time.”That’s why the spin has been so effective, the ability to maintain pressure throughout an over and a spell, and then that’s picked up wickets. As I said ,I think the pace group’s probably been off at different times, but that’s a really exciting thing because if we can get that right then I think there’s a complete game of cricket in us.”

Openers add 287 for first wicket after Will Rhodes’ surprising decision to bowl first

ECB Reporters Network12-May-2022Ricardo Vasconcelos and Will Young racked up a record opening stand after Northamptonshire were put in by Warwickshire in their LV= Insurance County Championship match at Edgbaston.The openers stayed together until after tea to add 287 in 64.2 overs and lift their side towards a commanding 372 for two at the close of the first day.Vasconcelos, whose previous seven innings this season had yielded a combined 90 runs, stroked 156 (197 balls, 21 fours, two sixes) before falling to the second ball after tea. New Zealand batter Young scored a polished 134 (230 balls, 16 fours, two sixes), his 13th first class century and first for Northamptonshire.All that Warwickshire captain Will Rhodes could do was rotate his depleted bowling attack and rue his decision to insert. That was a surprising move, especially given that pace spearhead Liam Norwell was again ruled out by injury, so joined England seamers Chris Woakes and Olly Stone on the sidelines.Against a weakened bowling attack, on an excellent batting pitch, Northamptonshire made hay while Rhodes could only digest his ill-fortune in winning the toss.It was soon apparent that the pitch was very good for batting and, to Warwickshire’s dismay, the hazy conditions offered no swing. Olly Hannon-Dalby delivered his customary fine new ball spell (5-4-1-0) but runs then began to arrive steadily.Northamptonshire were on 119, with both batsmen on 51, at lunch, before Vasconcelos accelerated to take them to 287 at tea. The 24-year-old’s first 50 having come from 81 balls, his second took 59 and his third just 53. Young, meanwhile, advanced with quiet authority with neither batter offering a chance in the first two sessions.The breakthrough finally arrived immediately after tea when Nathan McAndrew, making his home debut, trapped Vasconcelos lbw. That ended what was comfortably Northamptonshire’s record opening stand against Warwickshire, overtaking the 176 by Brian Reynolds and Colin Milburn at Northampton in 1964.Young continue to chug along chancelessly until he departed in infuriating fashion when he tickled a leg-side catch to wicketkeeper Michael Burgess off Hannon-Dalby.The flurry of two wickets in 18 overs was as good as it got for Warwickshire. Emilio Gay, having spent two sessions waiting to go in next, batted solidly through the final session for 45 in company, for the last hour, with the in-form Luke Procter (17 not out).The visitors will resume tomorrow pretty confident of surpassing their previous record total against Warwickshire (507) and with half an eye on their record total against anyone (781). The Bears will just wish they could have today back again.